SARATOGA SPRINGS -- Saratoga Gaming and Raceway will offer gambling for 20 hours a day starting later this month under a plan being reviewed by the state Lottery Division.

The facility's officials recently asked the state agency to expand its hours of operation to 8 a.m. to 4 a.m. after the state Legislature and Gov. David Paterson signed a budget this week allowing New York's eight racinos to stay open 20 hours a day, four more hours than permitted by a former law.

City officials oppose the move, citing an aid cut and increased police and other costs.

The Saratoga racino consists of more than 1,700 electric gambling machines and a harness racetrack. It wants to capitalize on Saratoga's tourist crowds beyond its present hours of 10 a.m. to 2 a.m., and make up for an estimated $1.4 million in additional costs generated by a new fee the state will start charging racinos this fiscal year, said Rita Cox, a senior vice president at the Saratoga racino.

"We would love to add hours as quickly as possible," Cox said. "We hope to have that resolved in the next few days."

The new state law is effective immediately. The state Lottery Division is discussing how to move Saratoga Gaming and Raceway to 8 a.m.-4 a.m. operation year-round. The hours likely will change in a few weeks after talks with machine vendors and a review of staffing is done, Lottery spokeswoman Jennifer Givner said. "We are in favor of the extra hours," Givner said. "We think it allows our racinos to be more competitive."

The expanded racino hours and a new state budget provision that takes an additional 1 percent of track vendor commissions from the racinos are part of the state's larger emphasis on raising revenues from gambling. The 1 percent charge would cost Saratoga Gaming and Raceway about $1.4 million a year, but the payments from all eight racinos would generate a total of about $30 million annually for the state, a governor's budget aide said.

"The increased hours will help offset that ($1.4 million) loss, but it's certainly not going to make it whole," Cox said.

City officials, however, oppose expanded hours the expansion. They say the racino is increasingly having a negative impact on Saratoga Springs and its services at a time when state leaders have ceased providing the city any aid for it. Gov. Paterson in recent years eliminated some $3.9 million a year in state aid that the city had received for hosting the racino, and State Police who provided security outside the facility. City police now respond to crime calls outside the facility, and there are water, sewer and roadway costs related to the gambling hall, Finance Commissioner Kenneth Ivins said.

Also, while the site's more than 1,700 video slot machines raise money for education in the state, they hurt the local economy, Ivins said. People who come to the area to gamble rarely shop, he said. "The money is not going to the local merchants or the sales tax base," Ivins said. "It's really not supporting our economy."

Ivins conceded that city leaders don't have a say about the added hours. Public Safety Commissioner Richard Wirth plans to meet with Police Chief Christopher Cole and Fire Chief Robert Williams in the coming days to see if the new hours would require employee shift changes.

Givner would not say if other New York racinos had sought the extra hours, but it is believed that at least operations in Yonkers and Finger Lakes want to be open longer.

Saratoga Gaming and Raceway, the oldest racino in the state, earns more than $135 million a year in net machine income. But bets there increased by only 1 percent during the last fiscal year, which ended in March, and are up only .12 percent so far this year, the lowest of any racino in the state, the state Lottery Division said.

Cox attributes the drops to uncertainty in the state labor force and a natural leveling off of business since opening in 2004.

The racino is open seven days a week and on Christmas. Its Vapor nightclub and 325-seat buffet could also stay open longer if gambling hours are extended, she said. The facility is evaluating if additional security guards, cashiers and floor attendants will be needed for the new hours, Cox said.

She said that the racino really doesn't impact city services, and that hours would increase "as soon as we get the go ahead from the lottery."